Where Does Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury Take Place In The Timeline?

The "Gundam" franchise is a sprawling anime series that features intense interstellar politics, close friendships, tests of loyalty, and of course giant fighting robots with all sorts of futuristic armaments. According to IMDb, there have been over 40 different shorts, television series, specials, and movies set in the "Gundam" universe. And given that there are multiple timelines and alternate dimensions, it can be somewhat tricky to pin down when a specific iteration of "Gundam" takes place. In other words, much of the "Gundam" franchise isn't beholden to what came before, though there is always a common thread of giant robotic battle mechs that are piloted by people on opposing sides of conflict.

"Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury" is the latest installment of the franchise, and it follows a young transfer student named Suletta Mercury (Kana Ichinose), which marks the first time the main character is female. Somewhat shy and unassuming, Suletta controls a newly developed Gundam Aerial that was developed on the planet Mercury. However, with so many "Gundam" television shows, shorts, and movies, where does "Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury" actually take place within the timeline of the franchise?

Typically, most "Gundam" television shows take place in a timeline and era called the Universal Century, or U.C., according to Gundam Fandom. The very first television series of the franchise, 1979's "Mobile Suit Gundam," takes place in the year U.C. 0079, and many of the subsequent series are set within this main universe's timeline. For example, "Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam" takes place in U.C. 0087, and "Mobile Suit Victory Gundam" takes place in U.C. 0153. Despite the Universal Century being one of the major timelines in the "Gundam" franchise, "Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury" actually takes place in a timeline with a completely different way of marking the passage of years, which means that it is not connected to the previously mentioned television series.

It turns out that "The Witch From Mercury" is a stand-alone show within the franchise and actually takes place in its own dimension and history. As noted by the official "Gundam" website, this television show takes place in Ad Stella, or A.S., in the year 122. Unfortunately, we don't have much information regarding this new timeline, and since it isn't connected to any other "Gundam" series, it means that this new series is pretty much free to do whatever it wants without having to worry about canon, lore, or future events. In other words, for longtime fans of "Gundam," this new series represents somewhat a fresh start, and there is a completely new history to learn.